Subscribe
Follow Us
Often, head coaches don't like to see their quarterbacks run. It places them in harm's way, in turn, hampering the chances of winning. However, Bill O'Brien of the Houston Texans is different; he wants to let his quarterback Deshaun Watson run.
Watson recorded a 20-yard rushing touchdown in the Texans' victory over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card round, in doing so, he carried multiple defenders for a few yards to reach paydirt. That doesn't worry O'Brien, because he wants to let Watson play Watson football.
“I think that you got to be really careful when you're coaching these guys like this,” O'Brien said on Wednesday. “You've got to let them play, you’ve got to guide them, do the best you can to guide them as to how you see the game being played and when to make great decisions for the team and when to throw it away or reserve the right to punt or whatever it is, and then you’ve got to let them play. You’ve got to let them play. You cannot take away the instincts of a guy like Deshaun Watson. That's not the right way to coach him.”
Watson's rushing totals went down in 2019, despite having a career-high in rush touchdowns (seven). He logged 82 attempts for 413 yards, as compared to 99 attempts for 551 yards in 2018.
The Texans' playbook has no shortage of rushing plays for Watson. They get him out into open space often, either to pull-in defenders for the pass or for him to run it himself. Luckily, he can take a hit, and, often, can deflect them.
